“HOLLYWOOD REPORTER” REPORTER CRASHES NBC REHEARSAL

The Hollywood Reporter may be — as numerous reports have indicated — in its last days as a daily trade publication. Its staff may have been decimated, and morale reportedly has never been lower. But that didn’t stop an enterprising THR reporter from scooping all other publications by being the first to reveal NBC’s drastically revamped schedule for next fall on its website on Sunday and in the print edition today (Monday). As rival Broadcasting & Cable acknowledged today: “News of the network’s schedule and contents of its May 17 upfront event leaked out May 16 after a reporter from The Hollywood Reporter crashed an upfront rehearsal at the New York Hilton.” The unidentified THR reporter tweaked NBC executives by tagging his story with the observation that NBC entertainment chairman Jeff Gaspin was planning to joke during the upfront presentation that staging it at the Hilton instead of a theater would allow him to collect Hilton Honors rewards points. “The downside to having an upfront at the Hilton is it makes it easier for a reporter to crash your upfront’s tech rehearsal,” the reporter remarked.